Distribution Business Articles

A product recall is a request to return to the maker a batch or an entire production run of a product, usually due to the discovery of safety issues. The recall is an effort to limit liability for corporate negligence (which can cause costly legal penalties) and to improve or avoid damage to publicity. Recalls are costly to a company because they often entail replacing the recalled product or paying for damages caused in use, albeit possibly less costly than indirect cost following damages to brand name and reduced trust in the manufacturer.

Lately, there has a rash of product recalls from many industries.  Products like batteries, food, toys, tires and so forth, are being recalled .   There are many areas that have not been impacted and that go under reported as well from landscape lighting to desk chairs to large portions of the food supply that didn't harm anyone yesterday, last month or last year. It only takes a few 'bad apples' however to cause a problem and quality initiatives have possibly never been more important for distributors to manage than they are now. You can't necessarily assume that the manufacturer is going to cover a product, build it right, or back it up during a recall. You can not assume that the brand on a product is being managed well by the company that licensed that brand to the manufacturer.

So, the questions are what actions are we planning to take to stop this onslaught of faulty products? 

Do you trust the government to do the right thing? By Your Company?  By Your Customers?  By Your Family?